Sign of the Twine: Water, Day 13

Welcome to the Playoffs! Who wants the chip? Let’s get it.


Game 1: Sky High v. Runnin’ Rebels. The Rebels are off to the races early and E-Smoove (17 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block) picks up two quick fouls signaling trouble for Sky High. The Phenom moved in for the kill early with 21 of his teams’ 28 first half points, finishing with (32 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks), just another day at the office for the prolific one. But don’t blink – Sky High locks down on D, led by the ferocious efficiency of the King Cobra (3 point, 14 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, 1 block) cutting the lead to one just before the half with Frost pouring in (12 points) and Billy Ho bringing the noise with (14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals).

But Sky High suffered from too many self-inflicted wounds, going 8/18 from the charity stripe and missing a Google of chippies. Fatigue began to set in during the second half where they didn’t get to the line once and were out-rebounded as a team 59-34. And that simply will not get it done – not in this post-season. Scoop (9points, 15 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 3 blocks) and the Carpenter (2 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal) shut down the paint. Scrappy (9 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 steals) and the General (6 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 1 block) made solid contributions. And Hilltop is the perfect complement off the bench with (4 points, 4 rebounds), and old-school fundamentals. When the Rebels run, nobody does it better. They sent a message today with a 62-48 win.

Game 2 pitted the Regulators against the Funky Technicians. Coach-C was absent from the bench for the Regulators with the Gem filling in as assistant coach. I’m not sure what the plan was, but it was executed to near perfection. 4-0-9 didn’t get the start, and that’s about the only thing he didn’t get in a superb performance. The Funky T’s sprinted out to an early 8-2 advantage. Enter 4-0-9 (15 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 blocks), the rebounding champ who also runs the floor. The Regulators quickly claimed the lead; they would not trail again. 4-0-9 controlled the pace of the game on both ends and had easily, the play of the day with a spin-move in the post, receiving the inbounds pass from the Blanket, over the shoulder ala Hall of Famer, Jerry Rice and finishing – in the colorful words of CBS Sports’ Bill Raftery “with a little smooch” electrifying the yard.

The Regulators led by as many as 19 points. The Funky Technicians would make on last run led by Heart-N-Soul (25 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals) and the Regulators made him work for everything he got. Then the Regulators went to their closer – in the form of Silk Money (20 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block). When he wasn’t finishing at the rim, he was from the stripe to close the show – 59- 54. With the Bigg Dogg (6 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists) providing the poise and veteran leadership – the Regulators are in a good place. This is the playoffs! It’s physical, it’s dirty; it’s nasty. And if you’re waiting on the officials to bail you out with the nickel-dimes, you’d be better off going upstairs and playing checkers.

Mr. Blue
Copyright © 2012 by Paul Brown